CHICAGO (WGN) — Concerns remain about health and emergency care after the closure of two local hospitals. Those concerns worsened after two lawmakers canceled a town hall meeting set for Monday night at the last minute.  

Hundreds of people are expected to gather at Malcolm X College to discuss the recent closures of Weiss Memorial Hospital and West Suburban Medical Center. But the presentation is missing two of its key speakers. Illinois Senate President Don Harmon and State Representative Camille Lilly both abruptly pulled out of the scheduled panel. In a joint statement, the lawmakers said Monday's town hall was not the community-led meeting originally proposed.

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Harmon and Lilly criticized organizers for hosting the event outside the neighborhoods directly impacted by the hospital closures. Both also claimed that organizers altered the program without their knowledge to add executives from Insight Chicago Hospital—a group reportedly seeking to take over West Suburban Medical Center.

Rev. Robin Hood, with the Coalition to Save Safety Net Hospital, said, "We've asked more than Insight to come to this meeting because we want the best advice that we can in moving forward in saving these hospitals. Insight just happened to be the one that was more open to it."

The Coalition to Save Safety Net Hospitals accuses the politicians of backing out at the last minute. Coalition leaders insist organizers neutrally selected Malcolm X College and that there was no issue with the event being there until now.

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"They waited until the 11th hour and said, 'They needed to change it from Malcolm X.' Well, it was too late. We had already told our community members. We told everybody it was going to be a Malcolm X," Hood said. "They knew it was going to be a Malcolm X for more than a month."

Organizers say the panel will carry on despite the absence of lawmakers. It will include former hospital employees, such as doctors and nurses.

Meanwhile, both Harmon and Lilly say they plan to host their own community meeting soon.

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